He had actually mastered a C-rank ninjutsu before even graduating from the Ninja Academy, and from the look of it, his control over it was already solid. This wasn't the clumsy imitation of a beginner. He had reached the point where he could weave it smoothly into real combat.
Two blazing fireballs slammed into each other in the middle of the training ground.
The chunin examiner jolted in alarm and instinctively moved to intervene, only to have a powerful hand press down on his shoulder and hold him in place.
It's fine, Chunin Menga. I'm here. Nothing will happen.
A jonin with a prominent nose had appeared at his side at some point, his gaze fixed on the battlefield below. Only then did Menga finally let out a breath he had been holding.
Of course. The Hokage's son was down there. Someone had to be watching. How could they possibly allow anything to happen to him?
"Attack Sword Jonin, so you're here too. Thank goodness."
Chunin Menga lowered himself back into his seat, his nerves easing.
"As expected of the Hokage's son and a genius of the Uchiha clan. The two of them have already learned such powerful ninjutsu before they've even graduated. If you hadn't been here, I really wouldn't have known how to stop them."
As he watched the two children still locked in a fiery deadlock, Menga spoke with a helpless sigh to Kojimatsu.
"A genius from the Uchiha clan… wasn't there supposed to be two this year? Where's the other one?"
"There, over by the tree. His name is Uchiha Gen."
Menga pointed toward the boy lounging in the shade. "He gets near-perfect scores on every written test and always comes in first. His practical combat ability isn't any worse than Enjun's either. But now that they've shown off this level of ninjutsu, it looks like he might still be a little behind."
Kojimatsu's gaze followed the direction of Menga's finger and landed on Uchiha Gen.
Gen was talking casually with the classmate beside him, his posture loose and unguarded. What stood out even more was the atmosphere around him. None of the students nearby seemed to dislike him, let alone avoid him.
Just as the Third Hokage's intelligence had described, this Uchiha had a relatively mild temperament. He didn't carry the prickly arrogance so often seen in talented children of the Uchiha clan. If anything, he looked easy to get along with.
Kojimatsu studied Gen for a moment, then glanced toward Sarutobi Enjun. A nearly invisible nod passed through him as a certain thought took shape in his mind.
In one more day, both of those boys would become his subordinates.
Kojimatsu felt both satisfied and troubled by the genin team the Third Hokage had assigned to him.
As one of the Third Hokage's trusted confidants, he understood very clearly that the structure of this graduating squad carried political meaning far beyond the surface.
Sarutobi Enjun was the Third Hokage's son, a direct descendant of the Hokage line. With his talent and pedigree, there was a high chance he would grow into one of the core figures of that line in the future.
The Uchiha clan, meanwhile, still stood outside Konoha's true upper circle. They were powerful, prestigious, and impossible to ignore, but ever since the deaths of the Second Hokage and Uchiha Kagami, the rift between the clan and the village had only deepened.
Right now, it was only the faintest beginning, a subtle tension not yet visible to most people. But if no one did anything, it could become real trouble in just a few short years.
That was why the Third Hokage needed to cultivate a new Uchiha Kagami before things reached that point—someone who could serve as a bridge between Konoha's leadership and the Uchiha clan.
First, that person had to possess a certain level of talent. At the very least, they couldn't be mediocre. Once they grew up, they would need enough strength to hold real influence within the Uchiha clan itself.
Second, their temperament mattered just as much.
At minimum, they needed the potential to be shaped by the Will of Fire. Only then could they become a true ally of the Hokage's camp.
Because of the education and personality he had brought from his previous life, Uchiha Gen had been selected, despite outwardly displaying little more than the social instincts of an ordinary person.
In the original timeline, Uchiha Obito—a hot-blooded idiot with a good heart—had likely been placed on Minato's team for similar reasons.
Obito had graduated at nine, become a chunin at eleven, and learned the Great Fireball Technique. That alone was enough to prove he had talent. At the very least, he counted as a minor genius. Even if he had been called the dead last, he had still been the dead last of an elite class.
He only looked weak because he wasn't all that bright.
"And the other one? Uzuki Ruri?"
Kojimatsu lifted a hand and pointed with his sword toward a pretty girl in the crowd, one with soft purple hair.
That was the final member of his squad.
Menga nodded and explained, "That's right. Uzuki Ruri. She ranked fifth on the written exam and fourth in the practical assessment. Her future looks very promising."
This class carried special political weight from the start. Just like how the Ino-Shika-Cho trio were always arranged together, there was no need to worry about putting average students into this kind of team. The remaining slot couldn't be filled by someone too weak.
Better yet, it should be someone capable of smoothing out the atmosphere of the team.
While the two men spoke, the battle between Sarutobi Enjun and Uchiha Inahisa finally came to an end.
In the end, Sarutobi Enjun won.
His fireball had successfully overwhelmed Inahisa's Great Fireball. The moment she was forced to dodge, he pressed the advantage, chased her down, and ultimately defeated her.
"Damn it!"
Uchiha Inahisa slammed her fist against the ground. She glared at Sarutobi Enjun with open fury, then turned and shot another sharp look at Uchiha Gen.
She had wanted to win this match first, then defeat Gen fair and square, and use that victory to prove to everyone that among this generation of Uchiha prodigies, she was the stronger one. She had trained hard in ninjutsu for exactly that reason.
But she had still lost.
"Whew. That was rough, Gen. Your turn now."
Fresh off his victory, Sarutobi Enjun looked at Uchiha Gen with excitement written all over his face.
"Take a break first," Gen said as he swallowed the last raisin. "Besides, Inahisa already forced out all the ninjutsu you know. Your cards are on the table now. Are you sure you can still beat me with your information leaked like that?"
Even though Uchiha Inahisa had lost, her performance had been impressive. More importantly, Enjun had clearly burned through a great deal of chakra and stamina to win that exchange.
"It's fine. Didn't you just fight Ruri too? I only need ten… uh, fifteen minutes."
As he said that, Sarutobi Enjun couldn't help sneaking a glance toward the purple-haired girl.
Heh. Ruri really is pretty.
The moment Gen saw the faintly dazed look on Enjun's face, he understood everything.
This guy wanted to show off in front of the girl he liked.
And maybe, just maybe, he also wanted to use Gen as a stepping stone while he was at it.
After all, in the previous combat drill, the one who had defeated Uzuki Ruri had been Gen.
"Sure," Uchiha Gen said calmly. "I'll wait until you've recovered enough."
Sorry, Hayabusa. But for the sake of my experience points, I'll have to make you lose face in front of your goddess.
Sarutobi Enjun tipped back the cup in his hand and took a gulp of the bright orange drink inside. After that, he swallowed a refined military ration pill sold by the Nara clan to replenish chakra, then bounded back toward the center of the field like an impatient monkey.
Across from him, Uchiha Gen rose and stepped forward as well, lifting his hands into the opposing seal.
Without anyone noticing when she had moved, Chunin Menga had already returned to the field. She raised one arm high, then chopped it down.
"Begin!"
Clang!
In an instant, the sharp ring of kunai colliding with shuriken echoed across the playground.
In the distant stands, Kojimatsu watched the match with one hand behind his back.
And in the Hokage's office, the Third Hokage lifted his pipe and observed the same scene through a crystal ball.